Drapery fixture



April 17, 1962 J. v. GRABER ETAL l 3,029,465

DRAPERY FIXTURE Filed March 25, 1960 Patented Apr. 17, 1962 fice3,029,455 nnArnnY Frxronn This Iinvention relates to drapery fixturesand particularly to a device for supporting a drapery rod intermediateits ends.

An important object of this invention is `to provide a bracket forsupporting a drapery rod intermediate its ends and which `is so arrangedas to enable the rod to be readily mounted or detached from the bracket,and which will not interfere with the drapery slides or the draperies asthey are moved along the rod.

Another object of this invention is to provide a device for supporting adrapery rod intermediate its ends, which support device has an improvedlatch arrangement for holding the drapery rod on the bracket, and whichlatch is adapted in one position thereof to support the rod for freeaxial sliding movement to facilitate adjustment of the rod duringinstallation and which latch is operative in another position thereof tofirmly lock the rod against axial movement relative to the bracket.

A more particular object of this invention is to provide a bracket forsupporting a traverse rod intermediate its ends, which bracket has alatch lever rotatable into and out of a position supporting the traverserod, and which lever is arranged so as to enable manipulation thereoffrom a convenient position below` the drapery fixture after the rod hasbeen installed in the bracket.

These, together with vario-us ancillary objects and advantages of thisinvention will `be more readily appreciated as the same becomes betterunderstood by reference to the following detailed description when takenin connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE l is a perspective View of the drapery rod support bracket;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the support bracket and drapery rod withthe latch lever in a position to slidably support the rod;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the drapery rod support bracket;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on the plane 4--4 of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view through a modified form of supportbracket for the outer section of an adjustable traverse rod and showingthe latch lever in a position locking the rod against axial movement.

In those drapery rod installations wherein the drapery rod extendsthrough a relatively long span, it is necessary to provide one or moreintermediate support stirrups for supporting the rod, The supportstirrup of the present invention is designed for use on a track `of thetype having a continuous longitudinal slot 11 in the rear lface thereofand a rearwardly extending bead 12 located above the slot 11. In theform shown, the track also has a forwardly extending bead 13 adjacentits upper edge.

The stirrup includes a generally L-shaped support bracket 15 having avertically disposed leg or plate 16 adapted to be attached to a wall anda horizontally disposed leg 17 extending outwardly from the upper edgeof the vertical leg. Openings 14 are provided in the leg 16 to receivethe usual attaching screws. Asbest shown in FIG. 4, the horizontal leg17 has a generally at portion 17a extending down the centerline thereofand downwardly opening channels 17h along the-side edges shaped so thatthe outer edges of the channels project below the underside of thecentral portion 17a to dene a guideway Cil therebetween. l stiten orrigidity the horizontally disposed leg; Alon'gitudinally extending slot18 is formed down the centerline of the central portion 17a, for areason to be described hereinafter.

A stirrup bodyf21, in the formof an elongated strap, is mounted' on thehorizontal leg 17 oli-the bracketA 15 for adjustment longitudinallythereof. Thestrap VIll-also has a generally flat central portion 21aadapted to underlie the iiat central portion 17a of Athe4 bracket, andhas olset ribs 2lb along opposite side edges thereof adaptedto extendpartway into the channels 17b ofthe bracketto the guide the strap forrectilinear movement alongthe horizont-al leg of the bracket. A screw orthe 'like-23 extends through the slot 18 inthe leg- 17 and into a tappedhole 24 in the# strap 21 to lock the strap in` an adjusted position. Thestrap has a hook portion 26 at itsouter end which extends downwardlyVand terminates atan inwardly directed lip 27 at itsouter end, The hookportion is arranged to engage the-forwardlyextending bead'13`on the rod1i),v to support the front side of the rod. In the event the rod 1G doesnot have a front bead such 215013," the hook portion 26may beextended'so as to engage the underside of the rod to support the same.

A latch lever 31 is mounted on the underside of the strap 2t atapointspaced inwardly from the hook 26:' The latch lever is supported forrotation about an axis perpendicular to the strap intoand out ofaposition engaging the rearbead 12 of the rod. The latchv` lever isspaced below the flat-central portieri 21a ofthe strap 21 and-for thispurpose the strap has a depression 33'forn1ed intermediate the endsthereof 'defining an annularbearing surface which is spaced below theunderside of the central portion 21a. A drawn sleeve 36 is formed in theYdepression 33 in the strap and extends lthrough an opening 37 in thelatch lever to rotatably support the same. After the latch lever isassembled `on the `sleeve 36v,the-sleevefis spun over to form aretaining flange 40. Preferably, the flange 40is arranged to press thelatch liver firmly against the underside of the strap so as tofrictionally' retainV the latch lever in any preset position. When thestirru'p'fis mounted on the ceiling, anattachingA screw (not shown) maybe inserted through' the opening inthe sleeve-r36 to provide additionalsupport for the stirrup.

The latch lever 31 has an embossed'central area- 31a dening a downwardlyextending cup-shaped portion which 'abuts against the bearing surfaceon-the underside of the strap. The lever has a rst nose -portion 38 extending outwardly from the lower edge of the cup-shaped portion andarranged to engage the inwardlyrextendingv bead 12 Von the traverse rod.As will be noted from FIGS. 3 and 5, the bead 12 is'tapered in adirection crosswise of the rod and the ynose 38h-spaced fromtheunderside of tne strap 21 la distance slightly less than the thicknessof the'bead so that the nose `f'rmly'presses the rod against the strapto hold the same in its clamped position. Preferably, the upper side ofthe nose 38 is serrated as indicated at 33a to increase the grippingaction of the latch lever. This firmly locks the rod against `axialmovement relative to the support stirru'p; However, during installation,it is frequently necessary to longitudinally adjust the rod relative tothe-bracket; For this purpose, a second nose portion 41l is provided onthe latch lever. The nose v41 is angularly spaced from the nose landis'also spaced a slightly 'greater distance from the underside of thestrap 21. The lever is movable to a second position,- shown in FIGS. 2and 3; in which the nose 41 underlies the beadv 12 on-the-rod;The'spacing ofthe nose41 is selected'so as"to`slidably support the rodon the stirrupv and enable longitudinal adjustment of the -rod duringYmounting-of'-thesarnei':

The latch lever, intermediate the noseAport-ionsfsand As is apparent,the channelslserve to 41, is cut away as indicated at 43 to permit therod to pass thereby, when the latch lever is positioned to yalign thecutaway edge 43 with the rod. In the form shown, the edge 43 is inclinedat an angle of about 30 with respect to the rod when the nose 41 on thelatch lever engages the bead 12. lt is therefore only necessary to movethe latch lever in a clockwise direction through an angle of from theposition shown in FIG. 2, to enable the rod to be inserted or removedfrom the stirrup bracket. A stop nger 48 is formed on the strap 21 andextends downwardly therefrom. The latch lever has a generally straightside 49 extending along the side thereof opposite the nose portion 41,and which side is arranged to engage the stop 48 to limit movement ofthe lever between its slide position shown in FIG. 2 and its lockposition shown in FIGS. l and 5.

The support stirrups are located intermediate the ends of the draperyrod and it is essential to proper operation that the stirrups be soarranged as to not interfere with the slides such as or the draperies asthe slides move along the rod. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the latchlever lies wholly above the slot or trackway 1l formed in the rod so asto not interfere with the drapery slides or draperies. The latch leverhas an elongated slot formed therein and located eccentric to the axisof rotation of the lever, which slot is arranged to nonrotatably receivethe blade S of a screw driver. With this arrangement, a screw driver canbe inserted into the slot 55 from -a position below the support stirrup,and the latch lever rotated between successive positions by merelyturning the screw driver. Since the screw driver iS removed after therod is installed, it does not interfere with the operation of the slidesor draperies. Moreover, this yarrangement enables rotation `andmanipulation of the latch lever from a more convenient height spacedbelow the drapery bracket. This is of considerable importance sincethese support stirrups are generally mounted `at an elevated positionand are not readily accessible. Preferably, the slot 55 extendsgenerally tangent to its path of rotation so as to minimize the overallsize of the lever required.

It is apparent that each stirrup is arranged to take only a certain sizedrapery rod and that different size rods will require stirrup bracketsof different size. Thus, when adjustable type rods are employed in whichan outer section 10' surrounds one end portion of the inner rod 10, thestirrup bracket must be modified accordingly.

This can be conveniently achieved by modifying the shape of the strap 21in such a manner as to enable use of the same support bracket 1S andlatch lever 31. In the stirrup bracket shown in FIG. 5, the supportbracket 15 and latch lever 31 are the same as shown in FIGS. l-4 andlike numerals `are used to designate corresponding parts. The modifiedstrap, designated 21', has the same general configuration as thatpreviously described. However, the hook portion 26 and inwardlyextending lip 27' on the strap are shaped to conform to the front beadon the outer rod section 10 and the central depression 33' in the strapis modified so that the latch lever 31 will properly engage the rearbead on the outer rod section.

From the foregoing it is thought that the operation and use of thestirrup will be readily understood. When installing the rod, the latchlever 3l is positioned with the edge 43 thereof extending parallel tothe edge of the hook 26. The rod is then inserted into the hook and thelever moved to the position shown in FIG. 2 to slidably suppor-t the rodduring installation. After the other brackets (not shown) have beenproperly installed, the latch lever is then rotated to the positionshown in FIG. l to firmly lock the rod against axial movement. Aspreviously described, the lever is rotated between successive positionsby a screw driver inserted into the slot 55 in the latch lever. Sincethe latch lever lies wholly above the trackway 11 in the rod 10, it doesnot interfere with movement of the slides 50 or drapery along the rod.

We claim:

l. A drapery fixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defininga longitudinally extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead extending longitudinally of the rod above said trackway, a rodsupport stirrup including a strap overlying the top of the rod andhaving a hook portion at its outer end engaging the front face of therod, a latch lever, means mounting said latch lever on the underside ofthe strap at a point spaced inwardly from the outer end thereof forrotation about an axis perpendicular to said strap, said lever having acup-shaped portion extending downwardly around said mounting means, anda nose portion on the lever extending outwardly from adjacent the loweredge of the cup-shaped portion in spaced relation to the strap andengaging the bead on the rod in one rotative position of the lever forclamping the rod against the underside of the strap.

2. The combination of claim l wherein said lever mounting means includesa hollow rivet defining an opening extending through the lever andstrap.

3. A drapery fixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defininga longitudinally extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead extending longitudinally of the rod above said trackway, a rodsupport stirrup including a strap overlying the top of the rod andhaving a hook portion at its outer end engaging the front face of therod, a latch lever, means mounting said latch lever on the underside ofthe strap at a point spaced inwardly from the outer end thereof forrotation about an axis perpendicular to said strap, said lever having acup-shaped portion extending downwardly around said mounting means, anose portion on the lever extending outwardly from adjacent the loweredge of said cupshaped portion in spaced relation to the strap andengaging the bead on the rod in one rotative position of the lever forclamping the rod against the underside of the strap, said lever having ablade portion spaced from said nose portion and extending outwardly fromadjacent the lower edge of said cup-shaped portion in spaced relation tothe underside of the strap, said blade portion having a slot thereindimensioned to receive the blade of a screw driver to enable rotation ofthe lever into and out of said one rotative position by a screw driverinserted into the slot from below the fixture.

4. A drapery fixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defininga longitudinally extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead extending longitudinally of the rod above said trackway, a rodsupport stirrup including a strap overlying the top of the rod andhaving a hook portion at its outer end engaging the front face of therod, a latch lever, means mounting said latch lever on the underside ofthe strap at a point spaced inwardly from the outer end thereof forrotation about an axis perpendicular to said strap, said lever having acup-shaped portion extending downwardly around said mounting means, afirst nose portion on the lever extending outwardly from adjacent thelower edge of the cup-shaped portion in spaced relation to the strap andengaging the bead on the rod in one rotative position of the lever forclamping the rod against the underside of the strap, said lever having asecond nose portion angularly spaced from said first nose portion andextending outwardly from the cup-shaped portion in spaced relation tothe underside of the strap a distance greater than said first noseportion and slightly greater than the thickness of the bead on the rod,said second nose portion loosely underlying the `bead on the rod in saidsecond rotative position of the lever to slidably support the rod forfree axial movement relative to the stirrup.

5. A drapery fixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defininga longitudinally extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead extending along the upper edge of the rod, a rod support stirrupincluding a strap overiying the top of the rod and having a hook portionat its outer end engaging the front face of the rod, a latch lever,means mounting the latch lever on the underside of the strap at a pointinwardly of its outer end for rotation about an axis perpendicular tothe strap between iirst and second rotative positions, said lever havinga first nose portion spaced from the underside of the rod a distance nogreater than the thickness of the bead on the rod at the point ofengagement therewith, said first nose portion engaging the bead on therod in said first rotative position of the lever to firmly clamp the rodto the strap and lock the same against axial movement, said lever havinga second nose portion angular-ly spaced from said first nose portion andlaterally spaced from the underside of the strap a distance greater thansaid first nose portion and slightly greater than the thickness of thebead on the rod, said second nose portion loosely underlying the bead onthe rod in said second rotative position of the lever to slidablysupport the rod for free axial movement relative to the stirrup.

6. A drapery fixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defininga longitudinally extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead extending along the upper edge of the rod, a rod support stirrupincluding a strap overlying the top of the rod and having a hook portionat its outer end engaging the front face of the rod, a latch lever,means mounting the latch lever on the underside of the strap at a pointinwardly of its outer end for rotation about an axis perpendicular tothe strap between first and second rotative positions, said lever havinga first nose portion spaced from the underside of the rod a distance nogreater than the thickness of the bead on the rod at the point ofengagement therewith, said first nose portion engaging the bead on therod in said iirst rotative position of the lever to firmly clamp the rodto the strap and lock the same against axial movement, said lever havinga second nose portion angularly spaced from said first nose portion andlaterally spaced from the underside of the strap a distance greater thansaid first nose portion and slightly greater than the thickness of thebead on the rod, said second nose portion loosely underlying the bead onthe rod in said second rotative position of the lever to slidablysupport the rod for free axial movement relative to the stirrup, saidlever having a blade portion spaced below the underside of said strapand a slot in said blade portion dimensioned to non-rotatably receivethe blade of a screw driver to enable rotation of the lever between saidrst and second rotative positions by a screw driver inserted into theslot from below the xture.

7. A drapery xture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defining alongitudinally extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead along its upper edge, a rod support stirrup including a strapoverlying the top of the rod and having a hook portion at its outer endengaging the front face of the rod, a latch lever, means mounting thelatch lever on the underside of the strap at a point inwardly of itsouter end for rotation about an axis perpendicular to the strap betweena first rotative position and a second rotative. position atsubstantially a right angle to said first position, said lever having afirst nose portion spaced from the underside of the rod a distance nogreater than the thickness of said bead on the rod at the point ofengagement therewith, said first nose portion engaging the bead on therod in said one rotative position of the lever to firmly clamp the rodto the strap, said lever having a second nose portion extending atsubstantially right angles to said rst nose portion and laterally spacedfrom the underside of the rod a distance greater than said iirst noseportion and slightly greater than the thickness of the bead on the rodat the point of engagement therewith, said second nose portion looseiyunderlying the bead on the rod in said second rotative position of thelever to slidably support the rod for free axial movement relative tothe stirrup.

8. A drapery iixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod defininga longitudinally extending trackway and 'having a rearwardly projectingbead along its upper edge, a rod support stirrup including a strapoverlying the top of the rod and having a hook portion at its outer endengaging the front face ofthe rod, a latch lever, means mounting thelatch lever on the underside of the strap at a point inwardly of itsouter end for rotation about an axis perpendicular to the strap betweena first rotative position and a second rotative position atsubstantially a right angle to said first position, said lever having afirst nose portion spaced from the underside of the rod a distance nogreater than the thickness of said bead on the rod at the point ofengagement therewith, said first nose portion engaging the bead on the:rod in said one 4rotative position of the lever to rrmly clamp the rodto the strap, said llever having a second nose portion extending atsubstantially right angles to said first nose portion and laterallyspaced from the underside of the rod a distance greater than said firstnose portion and slightly greater than the thickness of the lbead on therod at the point of engagement therewith, said second nose portionloosely underlying ythe bead on the rod in said second rotative positionof the lever to slidably support the rod for free axial movementrelative to the stirrup, said lever having a peripheral portionintermediate said tirst and second nose portions and spaced radiallyinwardly of said nose portions to provide clearance between the leverand the hook portion on the strap for insertion and removal of the rodwhen the lever is in a-rotative position intermediate said tirst andsecond positions.

9. A drapery fixture comprising, in combination, a traverse rod definingla longitudinaily extending trackway and having a rearwardly projectingbead along its upper edge, a rod support stirrup including a strapoverlying the top of the rod and having a hook portion at its outer endengaging the iront face of the rod, a latch lever, means mounting `thelatch lever on the underside of the strap at a point inwardly of itsouter end `for rotation about an axis perpendicular to the strap betweena first rotative position and a second rotative position atsubstantially a right angle to said first position, said lever having afirst nose portion spaced from the underside of the rod a distance nogreater than the thickness of said bead on the rod at the point ofengagement therewith, said first nose portion engaging the bead on therod in said one rotative position of the llever to firmly clamp the rodto the strap, said lever having a second nose portion extending atsubstantially right angles to said rst nose portion and laterally spacedJfrom the underside of the rod a distance greaterl than said first noseportion and slightly greater than the thickness of the bead on the rodat the point of engagement therewith, said second nose portion looselyunderlying the bead on the rod in said second rotative position of thelever to slidably support the rod for free axial movement relative tothe stirrup, and a stop arm extending downwardly from said strap yandengaging said lever in each said iirst and second rotative positions tostop the same in said first and second positions.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS874,651 Bagnall Dec. 24, i907 2,720,373 Bell Oct. 11, 1955 FORElGNPATENTS 536,073 Great Britain May 1, 1941V 652,898 Great Britain May 2,1951

